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President Donald Trump is poised to roll out a $12 billion farm aid package to support farmers, according to the White House. 

The aid package will provide up to $11 billion toward the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) new Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, which is designed to provide single payments to row crop farmers, while the remaining $1 billion will go to farmers whose crops do not qualify for the program. 

Further details will be hashed out as the USDA continues to evaluate market conditions, according to the White House. 

The president is expected to unveil the new aid package at a Monday roundtable at the White House. Those expected to appear at the event include Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, as well as corn, soybean, rice and other types of farmers. 

The announcement comes as the U.S. and China have gone head-to-head on trade negotiations in 2025, and after China reined in its soybean purchases from the U.S. amid ongoing tariff negotiations between Beijing and Washington, D.C. 

However, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in South Korea in October, where the two hashed out a series of agreements concerning trade. Specifically, Trump said he agreed to cut tariffs on Chinese imports by 10% — reducing the rate from 57% to 47% — because China said it would cooperate with the U.S. on addressing the U.S. fentanyl crisis.

Since those talks, China has started to boost its purchases of soybeans again. China purchased at least 840,000 metric tons of soybeans for delivery in December and January, Reuters reported in November. That purchase marked the largest shipment since at least January, Reuters reported. 

Meanwhile, Bessent said that China so far is upholding its end of the bargain on the trade deal, including provisions to buy 12 million tons of soybeans by the end of February 2026.

‘China is on track to ‍keep every ⁠part of the deal,’ Bessent said at The New ‍York Times Dealbook Summit Wednesday. 

China is the primary foreign purchaser of U.S. soybeans, and bought approximately half of U.S. soybean exports in 2024, totaling approximately $12.6 billion out of $25.8 billion in total U.S. exports, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and USDA. China also imported nearly 27 metric tons of soybeans that year. 

Trump is helping the agriculture industry by ‘negotiating new trade deals to open new export markets for our farmers and boosting the farm safety net for the first time in a decade,’ White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a Monday statement to Fox News Digital.

Trump has previously issued an aid package to farmers. When Trump’s first administration rolled out tariffs, China issued their own retaliatory tariffs that cost the federal government billions of dollars in government aid to farmers.

Bloomberg News first reported the aid package Sunday. 

Fox News’ Olivianna Calmes contributed to this report. 

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The Israel Defense Forces and Israel Security Agency have exposed what they describe as a secret Hamas money-exchange network operating in central Turkey ‘under Iran’s direction,’ according to documents and statements released this week.

According to the intelligence released by the IDF and ISA, exiled Gazans based in Turkey have used the country’s financial infrastructure to move large sums of money for Hamas, with transfers totaling hundreds of millions of dollars.

The agencies say the network operates in cooperation with the Iranian regime, transferring funds to Hamas and its senior officials and, according to Israel, helping the group rebuild its capabilities outside Gaza.

The newly exposed documents include records of currency transfers amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars, which officials say represent only a small portion of the overall activity.

According to the Israeli security agencies, the network receives, stores, and transfers Iranian funds from within Turkey.

The IDF and ISA identified three Gazan operatives working in Turkey whom they say are central to the network: Tamer Hassan, described as a senior official in Hamas’s finance office in Turkey operating directly under Khalil al-Hayya, and currency exchangers Khalil Farwana and Farid Abu Dair.

Israel says Iran’s backing has remained constant and that Hamas continues to rebuild its operational capabilities beyond the borders of the Gaza Strip.

The timing of the IDF and ISA revelations comes amid an ongoing U.S. debate over Turkey’s regional role and its relationship with Hamas. Fox News has previously reported that Turkey has hosted Hamas figures for years and has sought a leading role in postwar Gaza, even as the Trump administration weighs whether to allow Turkish troops to participate in a U.S.-backed stabilization mission.

Sinan Ciddi, a Turkey expert at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that Ankara’s political protection of Hamas — paired with its hostility toward Israeli military actions — has created a permissive sanctuary that Israeli pressure alone cannot shut down. 

Ciddi argues the presence of Turkish-based operatives shows how Hamas has diversified its financial footprint to evade sanctions and border controls. Ciddi added that for Israel, ‘this is not just a financial concern but a strategic warning signal’, arguing that Iran is embedding itself deeper into Turkey’s economic ecosystem and enabling a regional proxy to regenerate and project forces. If left unchecked, he warned, ‘the network could fuel future attacks and expand Hamas’s influence across the region, undermining Israel’s war aims and long-term security.’

In a recent interview with Fox News Digital, Gonul Tol, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and author of ‘Erdoğan’s War: A Strongman’s Struggle at Home and in Syria,’ said Turkey’s aggressive Gaza posture is deeply tied to Erdoğan’s domestic political survival and his longstanding support for Islamist movements across the region.

‘The primary goal there is domestic politics,’ she said. ‘Erdoğan has always framed himself as the champion of the Palestinian cause, and by his most conservative constituency, he’s often pushed to take a strong stance against Israel.’

But Tol noted that Erdoğan has also been pragmatic behind the scenes, particularly in his dealings with Washington. ‘People in his circle say the Hamas leadership had been asked to leave Turkey quietly. They are doing everything not to anger the Trump administration,’ she said.

She added that Erdoğan even pushed Hamas to accept Trump’s Gaza proposal, noting that it included provisions that did not favor the organization.

Israeli officials have long argued that Turkey’s permissive environment has allowed Hamas to operate external networks, including financial arms backed by Iran, and say the newly released intelligence underscores the risks of allowing Turkey deeper involvement in Gaza’s future.

In announcing the findings, the IDF and ISA warned individuals and institutions against engaging with the exposed network or any other financial arms linked to Hamas, saying such interactions risk contributing to terrorist financing and aiding Hamas’s attempts to reconstitute its infrastructure abroad.

The Turkish Embassy did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

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A co-founder of the House of Representatives’ DOGE Caucus is declaring that the movement for government efficiency is still alive and well, even if the surrounding furor has died down.

‘DOGE is alive. It certainly is not on the front burner as it needs to be. There’s still a lot of members of Congress that want to continue the battle [against] waste, fraud and abuse,’ Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., co-chair of the House DOGE Caucus, told Fox News Digital.

‘We’re still $38 trillion in debt, that’s growing. So anything we can possibly do — we’re still looking to continue the DOGE efforts.’

Bean said he was hoping to soon hold more caucus meetings ‘just to let everybody know DOGE is not dead.’

The concept of ‘DOGE’ took Washington — Republicans in particular — by storm earlier this year, when President Donald Trump tapped billionaire Elon Musk to lead an initiative called the ‘Department of Government Efficiency.’

Musk said at the time that he was committed to finding as much as $2 trillion in savings for the federal government. That goal was not reached by the time Musk reached the end of his tenure, however.

The DOGE website, which has not been updated since early October, claims an estimated $214 billion in savings for the federal government.

But Bean and other Republicans have tried to keep it alive, celebrating that cutting bureaucratic red tape and bloated federal contracts was finally generating enthusiasm in the cultural zeitgeist.

Musk’s push spurred multiple similar efforts in Congress, including Bean’s caucus and a House Oversight subcommittee called ‘Delivering on Government Efficiency’ (DOGE).

The caucus, which is also co-chaired by Reps. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, and Blake Moore, R-Utah, had several meetings that saw Republicans and even some Democrats in attendance.

Those, too, have since wound down, but Bean told Fox News Digital that he’s looking to bring them back and could begin with a focus on unused office space owned by the U.S. government.

‘I’m not saying it’s mismanaged, I’m just saying it’s not the most efficient use of taxpayer dollars to maintain all this space where people still work from home or are working across the country,’ Bean said. ‘That’s something that I think we can coalesce around, save some money as well as get spending under control.’

He also said he hoped for more bipartisan participation going forward, telling Fox News Digital, ‘It shouldn’t be a partisan issue. Everybody should be on board.’

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In the absence of a Tarik Skubal blockbuster, Major League Baseball’s winter meetings will have to make do with the best of what’s still around.

Can the industry conjure up a more interesting trade than one involving Arizona Diamondbacks infielder Ketel Marte? Alas, a deal involving the 32-year-old whose connection with his current team might be a bit strained looms as the meetings’ potential highlight on the trade market.

In that spirit, let’s examine a handful of Marte trade destinations that may make sense for the acquiring team and the Diamondbacks:

Pittsburgh Pirates

As close to an ideal match as you’ll find. The Pirates have signaled that they’re kinda-sorta open for business, but forays such as their reported offer to Kyle Schwarber will still land in the “lol sure” file of any self-respecting agent.

No, you have to plant a flag and build some credibility before making money moves – the Blue Jays are a fine example of all this – and the Pirates are a long way from that stage, assuming their perpetually penurious ownership group ever reaches it.

Enter Marte. He has six years and $102.5 million remaining on an extension he signed in April, a per annum that certainly fits the Pirates’ model (think if it as a Bryan Reynolds Jr.-type deal).

The Pirates finished last in runs scored but have some pitching to spare; the Diamondbacks lost Merrill Kelly at the trade deadline and are losing Zac Gallen. If Pittsburgh can expand a package beyond simply a salary swap that unloads the $55 million still due Mitch Keller, this one could work.

Seattle Mariners

What’s old is new, eh? The Mariners signed Marte out of the Dominican Republic in 2010 (Julio Rodriguez was just 9 years old at the time) and nurtured him into a big leaguer before dealing him to Arizona in a package headlined by Mitch Haniger and Jean Segura.

Now, the Mariners are in need of infield reinforcements. They could run it back a third time with Jorge Polanco, who came up clutch for them throughout the postseason. Or, they could burn some trade capital and welcome Marte back to the Pacific Northwest.

For one, it’s not like the Mariners have left their offensively deficient ways totally in the rear view. Re-signing Josh Naylor went a long way toward shoring that up, but the loss of Eugenio Suarez – he put up a .956 OPS in a seven-game ALCS – needs to be mitigated.

The Mariners have the pitching depth to deal from without disrupting their consensus top five, and a trove of middle infielders that could be viewed as eventual Marte replacements. We’ve heard baseball ops chief Jerry Dipoto likes to trade every now and then, too.

Detroit Tigers

These guys land in almost every one of these exercises, and that won’t change until they’ve built a World Series-friendly roster. For the same reason they’d be a good fit for Alex Bregman or any number of impact bats, Marte would represent a significant offensive upgrade – an everyday 145 adjusted OPS in the lineup.

In Comerica Park, he might not reach 36-homer heights as he did in 2024, but his 15.9% career strikeout rate would add a nice contact element in a lineup featuring Riley Greene (30.7% K rate in 2025) and Spencer Torkelson (26%). While there’s no obvious major league-ready piece that could come off Detroit’s roster and get shipped to Arizona, the Diamondbacks would be well-positioned to reinvest in the free agent market minus Marte.

Philadelphia Phillies

The kids grow up so fast these days, don’t they?

Believe it or not, Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott is just two seasons from free agency. Third baseman Alec Bohm hits the market after this season and has been a walking trade rumor the past couple years.

Acquiring Marte would help backfill against those losses and adding a switch-hitter to the Phillies lineup would protect against the club leaning too left- or right-handed in the future. It would also give the Phillies a potentially elite infield in the long term, with Bryce Harper at first, Marte at second, and Trea Turner and top prospect Aidan Miller on the left side of the diamond.

It just so happens the Diamondbacks have a vacancy at third base; adding Bohm might be a marriage of temporary convenience. Throw in one of the lefty relievers the Phillies may shop – such as Matt Strahm – and a starting pitching piece from the upper minors, and suddenly it’s a nice present and future deal for Arizona.  

Toronto Blue Jays

Presumably, the Blue Jays’ reported due diligence on Marte revolves around a Bo Bichette departure. Perhaps the Jays are figuring on that, or simply realize it’s a possibility.

We’ll make that assumption for the sake of this exercise, as well. Marte would give the Blue Jays a fairly absurd top of the lineup, sandwiched between George Springer and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., while allowing Ernie Clement and Addison Barger to float between third base and the outfield, respectively.

In short, it’d create admirable depth in the short term and provide a much-needed bat for future seasons should Bichette and Springer depart in consecutive years. Would the Diamondbacks be interested in inheriting Jose Berríos’s contract from the pitching-rich Blue Jays and try to keep him healthy?

With a little financial assistance along with a few other assets, sure.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

Not one, but two non-Power Four programs reached the College Football Playoff in 2025, thanks to ACC champion Duke being left out of the field.

Duke reached the ACC title game despite holding a 7-5 regular season record due to the matchup being decided by multiple tiebreakers, thus leaving out No. 10 Miami, which reached the CFP as an at-large team. Duke’s win opened the door for Sun Belt conference champion James Madison at No. 12, on top of Tulane at No. 11.

College football personalities Paul Finebaum and Jordan Rodgers debated the Group of Six inclusions for the CFP on ESPN’s ‘Get Up’ Monday, Dec. 8.

‘They do not belong,’ Finebaum said. ‘And I’ll save you all the ‘due respect’ nonsensical preamble that we always use. There’s no reason to have schools like that in a playoff when you’re leaving home Notre Dame, BYU and Texas, and Vanderbilt. But this is like Washington politics, they made a deal. The commissioners blocked an initial idea to make this thing a couple years ago… It’s wrong, but it’s politics. It’s the way college athletics works unfortunately.”

Rodgers agreed, noting the watchability isn’t there for these games, either.

“Who wants to watch those games?’ Rodgers added. ‘We already watched one of them. I think this is getting an extra spotlight because JMU is in it, but if it was just Tulane, they already got beat by Ole Miss 45-10. We’ve seen that football game. I love the comparison to the basketball March Madness because I actually feel having these Group of Five, Group of Six teams with a chance to compete for a national championship is good for the fabric of the NCAA, of football, of college football.

‘But that would be the equivalent of saying we’re going to add two 16 teams, but we’re going to take out two No. 3 ranked teams in the March Madness, you can’t do that. You need to expand the playoffs, but they need to change the metrics to which those teams are allowed to get in. It can’t just be top 25. If you’re top 15, top 10 or top 16, if that’s the number of playoffs, then maybe you can have that consideration, but we can’t be doing a Make A Wish program with the College Football Playoffs and just adding teams because we feel like they should deserve it.”

Rodgers also agreed a similar sentiment being shared across college football of conference championship games potentially ending in favor of a CFP expansion.

“Lets actually get the best teams in, which I think is the end of conference championship games,’ he said. ‘I think they’re meaningless now. They were meaningless a couple days ago, and that doesn’t change. Let’s just rank the teams, regardless of conference. Let’s have a different metric for Group of Five, so there’s still an opportunity but not a guarantee and let’s have the best teams play.

‘Because Notre Dame could win a national championship. Texas could win. They already beat two teams who are hosting. And Vandy is a team that nobody wants to play. Those teams don’t have a chance because JMU and Tulane do.”

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf made a visit to the hospital following his team’s game against the Baltimore Ravens ‘out of an abundance of caution,’ NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reports.

Metcalf’s was pulled off the team flight and sent to the hospital after he experienced stomach pains ahead of the trip from Baltimore to Pittsburgh.

The Steelers’ medical team ‘removed him from the plan out of an abundance of caution,’ a team spokesman said in a statement.

Metcalf was discharged from the hospital and stayed overnight in Baltimore. He is expected to fly back to Pittsburgh on Monday, Dec. 8 to rejoin the team.

It isn’t clear whether Metcalf’s ailment will impact his ability to play in the Steelers’ Week 15 game against the Miami Dolphins on ‘Monday Night Football.’

Metcalf enjoyed his best game as a Steeler in Pittsburgh’s 27-22 win over Baltimore. The former Seahawk logged a season high in targets (12), receptions (7) and receiving yards (148) while showing a strong connection with quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Metcalf has totaled a team-high 52 reception for 753 yards and five touchdowns during his first season with the Steelers.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

It’s a different year, with more teams in the College Football Playoffs, but Alabama is still a lightning rod for criticism.

The Crimson Tide were left in the CFP field of 12 and, in fact, were not dropped after an abysmal SEC championship game showing against Georgia in which they rushed for minus-3 yards and suffered a 28-7 drubbing at the hands of the Bulldogs.

Left out in the cold was an independent that did not play during conference championship weekend: Notre Dame, which flipped with Miami after being ahead of the Hurricanes in the penultimate rankings. The selection committee has since been lambasted, with its inherent biases being heavily criticized. However, human biases aside, the computer model that once governed the final rankings – the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) – agrees … kind of.

The BCS would have had Notre Dame in and Alabama behind the Irish at No. 10, leaving Miami on the outside looking in. That would see Notre Dame in Norman taking on Oklahoma in its first-round game and Alabama heading to College Station to play Texas A&M.

Also notably, under the BCS system Ohio State would still be No. 2 and a hair’s breadth ahead of Georgia, which would leave an Indiana-OSU national championship. It would be a controversial year by any metric, but that’s a byproduct of conference expansion creating tiebreakers that lead to odd conference championship matchups.

What would BCS final rankings be?

Here’s a look at roughly what the final BCS rankings would look like. The Harris Interactive College Football Poll, part of the BCS formula, of course no longer exists. But it can be simulated by the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll. Bold indicates a playoff berth under the current format:

  1. Indiana (13-0)
  2. Ohio State (12-1)
  3. Georgia (12-1)
  4. Texas Tech (12-1)
  5. Oregon (11-1)
  6. Mississippi (11-1)
  7. Texas A&M (11-1)
  8. Oklahoma (10-2)
  9. Notre Dame (10-2)
  10. Alabama (9-3)
  11. Miami (10-2)
  12. BYU (11-2)
  13. Vanderbilt (11-2)
  14. Texas (9-3)
  15. Utah (10-2)
  16. USC (9-3)
  17. Michigan (9-3)
  18. Tulane (11-2)
  19. James Madison (12-1)
  20. Arizona (9-3)
  21. Virginia (10-3)
  22. Navy (9-2)
  23. North Texas (11-2)
  24. Iowa (8-4)
  25. Georgia Tech (9-3)

Indiana, Ohio State, Georgia and Texas Tech would get byes. Oregon would play James Madison in Eugene, Mississippi would see Tulane in Oxford, Texas A&M plays Alabama in College Station, and Notre Dame ends up in Norman to play Oklahoma.

There would still be controversy, of course. It’s par for the course in these rankings. But at least according to the computers, it’s not Alabama getting in the field that’s an issue. It’s Miami jumping Notre Dame after a week in which neither team played.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

The Department of Health and Human Services has altered the official portrait of a transgender former Biden administration official to display the individual’s birth name, rather than adopted name.

The former official, who currently goes by Rachel Levine, achieved the rank of admiral and served in President Joe Biden’s administration as an assistant secretary for health. Levine was born a male and was the first transgender person to secure a Senate confirmation.

Up until the government shutdown this year, Levine’s portrait plaque in the HHS offices featured the name ‘Rachel Levine,’ but it now displays the official’s birth name, ‘Richard Levine.’

‘Our priority is ensuring that the information presented internally and externally by HHS reflects gold standard science. We remain committed to reversing harmful policies enacted by Levine and ensuring that biological reality guides our approach to public health,’ HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said in a statement.

Levine responded to the move both personally and through a spokesman in statements to NPR.

‘During the federal shutdown, the current leadership of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health changed Admiral Levine’s photo to remove her current legal name and use a prior name,’ Adrian Shanker, a spokesman for Levine, told NPR, going on to describe the move as an act ‘of bigotry against her.’

‘I’m not going to comment on this type of petty action,’ Levine told the outlet.

Levine was a steady source of controversy during the Biden administration, claiming that there was ‘no argument’ regarding effectiveness and safety of transgender medical procedures, and claiming that hormone blockers ought to be used to stop children from ‘going through the wrong puberty.’

‘Gender-affirming care is medical care,’ Levine said in 2023. ‘Gender-affirming care is mental health care. Gender-affirming care is literally suicide prevention care.’

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President Donald Trump and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., have been taking shots at each other on social media Monday, following Greene’s Sunday night appearance on ’60 Minutes’ in which she drew the president’s ire.

Greene, who is set to retire from Congress when her term ends in January, said during the interview that Republicans are ‘terrified’ of not going along with Trump and being the subject of an angry Truth Social post. During the interview, Lesley Stahl asked Greene, ‘Are you MAGA?’ Greene replied, ‘I am America first.’

Trump took to the social media platform Monday morning with his sights set on Greene.

‘The only reason Marjorie ‘Traitor’ Brown (Green turns Brown under stress!) went BAD is that she was JILTED by the President of the United States (Certainly not the first time she has been jilted!). Too much work, not enough time, and her ideas are, NOW, really BAD – She sort of reminds me of a Rotten Apple! Marjorie is not AMERICA FIRST or MAGA, because nobody could have changed her views so fast, and her new views are those of a very dumb person,’ Trump declared in part of a lengthy Truth Social post on Monday.

Greene fired back, repudiating the president’s assertion.

‘I AM AMERICA FIRST,’ she declared in a post on X, adding the American flag emoji. ‘Thank you for your attention to this matter.’

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announces resignation

Her post included a graphic indicating she received $0 from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), and that she ‘condemns Israel for committing genocide.’ Next to that was another graphic indicating that for Trump, there had been millions in ‘independent expenditures & campaign contributions received from pro-Israel interest groups.’ 

Fox News Digital reached out to Greene’s office on Monday for additional comment, but she did not immediately respond.

Trump on Marjorie Taylor Greene:

Greene had also been going after Trump over the weekend, before her interview aired.

In a Sunday post on X, Greene claimed Trump turned on her after she ‘stood with the Epstein Survivors.’ She also said the president had fired off ‘harsh accusatory replies and zero sympathy’ after she alerted him about threats made against her adult son’s life.

A White House official told Fox News Digital that the messages Greene cited had been referred to the FBI.

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Congress is moving to limit the Pentagon’s ability to pull forces out of Europe and South Korea, easing concerns among allied governments.

The 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, finalized by House and Senate negotiators and released Sunday evening, keeps force presence at roughly its current levels in both regions. It states that the U.S. cannot reduce its forces in Europe below 76,000 without submitting an assessment and certifying to Congress that such a move would not harm U.S. or NATO security interests.

The bill places restraints on reductions below 28,500 in South Korea. Any drawdown would require the Pentagon to assure Congress that deterrence against North Korea would not be weakened, confirm that allies were consulted, and provide both a national security justification and an assessment of regional impact.

The legislation also requires the U.S. to retain the position of Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), NATO’s top military post, codifying into statute a role traditionally held by an American general.

These limits follow reports that the Pentagon had considered reducing forces in Europe and South Korea and even relinquishing the SACEUR position. Whether those ideas reflected genuine planning or were intended as pressure on allies to invest more in their own defenses, U.S. leaders have recently signaled they are stepping back from such moves even without congressional restrictions.

During a meeting last week with U.S. national security officials and European leaders, American officials told their counterparts that Europe must be prepared to bear the brunt of NATO’s defense responsibilities by 2027, three European officials familiar with the meeting told Fox News Digital.

The U.S. plans to hold onto the SACEUR position but will offer some other senior NATO military posts to European nations, officials said. They also noted that Washington has no near-term plans for major troop reductions in Europe.

‘We’ve been very clear in the need for Europeans to lead in the conventional defense of Europe.  We are committed to working through NATO coordination mechanisms to strengthen the alliance and ensure its long-term viability as European allies increasing take on responsibility for conventional deterrence and defense in Europe,’ Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said in response. 

Earlier this year, the Army pulled a rotating brigade stationed largely in Romania back to the United States, prompting European allies to question whether that move might signal the beginning of broader U.S. force drawdowns on NATO’s eastern flank.

The NDAA — the yearly must-pass package outlining the Pentagon’s spending and policy priorities — is expected to move swiftly to a House vote this week. Congress aims to have the legislation on the president’s desk before Christmas.

The bill also includes $400 million for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative over two years and an amendment specifying when the Pentagon may reclaim equipment purchased for Ukraine but not yet delivered: only when the equipment is urgently needed for an ongoing or imminent U.S. contingency operation and failing to use it would risk loss of life or critical mission failure.

This provision follows the Pentagon’s decision earlier this year to pause delivery of certain U.S.-funded military equipment to Ukraine.

Over the weekend, War Secretary Pete Hegseth described South Korea and several European nations as ‘model allies.’

‘Model allies that step up, like Israel, South Korea, Poland, increasingly Germany, the Baltics and others, will receive our special favor,’ he said at the Reagan National Defense Forum. ‘Allies that still fail to do their part for collective defense will face consequences.’

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